In confirming this morning that Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, coming next month for PC, is also on the way to next-gen consoles, id and Activision let loose an interesting piece of the puzzle – the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions will be developed by totally separate teams.
The Xbox version is in development at Dallas-based Nerve Software, who worked on Doom 3 and Wolfenstein. The PS3 version is in the hands of Dave Mirra BMX developers Z-Axis, located in Foster City, California. Further complicating matters is the fact that the original game is being created by London's Splash Damage.
What does all this mean? Why do two separate development outfits have to do the console versions? Is it just a matter of timing? Manpower? Differences in skill sets? Differences in the development for each console? Very weird. Full release after the jump.
ID SOFTWARE CONFIRMS ENEMY TERRITORY*: QUAKE WARS*
FOR NEXT-GENERATION
CONSOLES
Santa Monica, CA – Feb. 13, 2007 –
The war between the GDF and Strogg will soon be igniting on next-generation consoles as id Software and Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) today confirmed that
Enemy Territory: QUAKE Wars™, the team-based first person action title, and already one of the most anticipated new properties of 2007 is coming to next-gen platforms. In this epic multiplayer-focused game, players can choose to defend humanity as a part of the Global Defense Force (GDF) or destroy it as a merciless Strogg alien invader.
Under the executive production of id Software, Nerve Software is developing Enemy Territory: QUAKE Wars
for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, while Z-Axis is the developer for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system.
“We're pleased to be working with Nerve and Z-Axis to bring the highly-anticipated gameplay from Enemy Territory: QUAKE Wars
to the Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 system,”
said Todd Hollenshead, CEO, id Software.
Winner of more than 15 awards in 2006 and already selected as one of the most anticipated new titles in 2007 by more than eight publications, Enemy Territory:
QUAKE Wars is being developed for the Windows PC by Splash
Damage – the Nerve Software and Z-Axis console versions will also feature strategic team play, persistent character promotions and online stats tracking. Players choose to battle as one of five unique classes in either the conventionally armed GDF army or the futuristic Strogg invasion force, each outfitted with specialist weapons and combat hardware. In this adrenaline pumping fight for survival, warring forces utilize a variety of different vehicles, deployable structures, and defense systems including quad-bikes, tanks, and alien walkers for epic ground assaults; or helicopters and anti-gravity ships to unleash airborne attacks. Throughout each battle, teams establish bases, deploy defense structures, artillery, radar, and advanced forward-command systems into enemy territory while constructing and demolishing obstacles to speed progress and gain a tactical advantage over the opponent. Enemy Territory____: QUAKE Wars** features
16-player battles on the console systems, delivering the ultimate team-and objective-based multiplayer experience.
Enemy Territory____: QUAKE Wars** has not yet been rated by the ESRB.
About id Software
id – defined by
Freud as the primal section of the human psyche; id Software, located in Mesquite, Texas, was founded in 1991. From inception to present day, id Software has relentlessly provided technical, design and artistic leadership as an independent game developer and technology provider. Transcending the games industry, id’s iconic brands such as Wolfenstein, DOOM, QUAKE and Enemy Territory
have become staples of popular culture for generations of gamers. More information on id Software can be found at www.idsoftware.com.
About Splash Damage Ltd.
Based in London,
England, Splash Damage Ltd is an independently-owned game developer dedicated to online gaming, and one of the leading Shooter developers in Europe.
Splash Damage developed id Software’s Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, winning multiple ‘Game of the Year’ awards, and is now developing Enemy Territory: Quake Wars.
Founded by Paul ‘Locki’ Wedgwood in 2001 with key members of the mod-making community, Splash Damage also contributed to DOOM 3 and Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Game of the Year Edition. For more information, visit www.splashdamage.com.
About Nerve Software
Nerve Software, founded in 2001, is a
Dallas-based independent developer focused on the production of superior video gaming. The company is committed to the creation of visually engaging worlds and gripping gameplay for a variety of platforms. Nerve’s releases have been enthusiastically received and include Return to Castle Wolfenstein Multiplayer for the PC, Return to Castle
Wolfenstein: Tides of War for Xbox and DOOM 3: Resurrection of Evil
for the PC and Xbox. For more information about Nerve visit www.nervesoftware.com.
About Activision Z-Axis
Foster City, Calif.-based Z-Axis (www.z-axis.com/home.php) has a history of producing notable games for the console, including the Dave
Mirra Freestyle BMX series of games.
